debonair

English

Etymology

French de bon air "having good appearances"

Pronunciation

• enPR: děb-ə-nɛr', IPA: /dɛbəˈnɛɹ/, SAMPA: /dEb@"nEr/

Adjective

debonair (comparative more debonair, superlative most debonair)

1. (obsolete) Gracious, courteous.
   • 1590, Edmund Spenser, The Faerie Queene, II.vi:

     Let be that Ladie debonaire, / Thou recreant knight, and soone thy selfe prepaire / To battell [...].

2. Suave, urbane and sophisticated.
3. (especially of men) Charming, confident and carefully dressed.

Anagrams

• diborane